What were the common types of food/banquets/ and drink in Shakespeare's time?
Prepared by: Eric H.
Food and Festivities The people of Shakespeare's time had quite a large selection from which to eat. Their specific diet changed with the seasons, as herbs, vegetables and fruits grew, or more types of meat were avaliable. During spring and summer, Elizabethan diets shifted slightly to more herbs and agriculture. But according to Jeffrey Singman in his book, Daily life in Elizabethan England, agriculture was laborious and was susceptible to disease. Furthermore, by today's standards, farming yielded small amounts of food due to misfortunes like poor weather. Farming did not supply all of the food Elizabethans ate, as livestock and meat was a huge part of the diet. As the Folger Shakepeare Library states in the web document, Fooles and Fricassees: Food in Shakespeare's England,Englishmen would eat any part of an animal that came their way. They were clever to trap birds and attempted to flavor their meat by feeding them spices and herbs. Travellers were impressed at how well Englishmen were fed. Elizabethan citizens ate a wide variety of items, and foreign travellers were sometimes jealous.
People ate at certain times of the day with their family. Breakfast was eaten early in the morning. Some people didn't even eat breakfast, but those that did either ate it right after they got out of bed, on the run as they went to work, or several hours after they woke. For breakfast, according to Jeffrey Singman author of Daily life in Elizabethan England,simple breakfast might have consisted of porridge or pottage (stew like food), or possibly scraps and leftovers from yesterday's supper. If some ate breakfast as a more hearty, sit-down meal, the food might consist of different types of bread with cheese and butter, ale, wine, plenty of fruit, and a form of meat. Whether the meat be chicken, beef or mutton. The real food was dinner. These hearty formal meals were served at 11 or noon time, around the modern day "lunch" time. And later, supper would be served at some time from 6 to 9 o'clock. These meals usually would have a few courses, each of the courses containing several dishes. As Jeffrey Singman writes, an old cookbook gives a sample menu. The first course would contain pottage or stew, salted beef, roasted meat, and other forms of meat. The second course would have lamb, roasted rabbits, venison and dessert. Most people were very religious in Elizabethan times, so prayers were always said before the meal. Also after the meal, a prayer was said again to give thanks. Manners in Elizabethan England was very important to families and was enforced fiercely if children were being rude. No matter the time of day, the way meals were eaten was the same for all classes in society.
Bread was an important part of everyone's diet. As Singman says, "it was always present at meals, although contemporaries agreed that it was less important in England than on the Continent." This doesn't mean the Elizabethan English folks didn't enjoy baking their many varieties of bread. Wheat was favored as the grain to use. Also whiter breads were preferred over darker breads. Besides wheat, English bakers used many different grains. The lower class usually made do with rye, barley, or mixed-grain breads. These were cheaper than the wheat that the rich ate. Bread wasn't baked in pans, therefore the loaves were round and short. Most bread would go stale after only a few days, but nothing was wasted. Stale bread was perfect for soups, stews, or pottage (stew). Hard, stale biscuits were favored over bread on ships as they lasted longer and didn't mold. Bread was in every meal, and came in many forms, but it was not the largest part of an Elizabethan diet.
There were many more varieties of meat eaten in the sixteenth century than today. Red meat often consisted of beef, mutton, pork, and lamb. For Poultry, chickens, ducks, geese, and the occasional pigeon found their way onto the table. Deer, rabbits, pigs, and wildfowl were used in an enormous variety of recipes. Seafood was an enormous economic business but it was also a decent part of the diet. Lower classes ate whatever meat was readily avaliable, while upper class folks went on hunting parties to kill deer and birds. As most people in Elizabethan England were very religious, meat was forbidden during lent or advent, or sometimes people wouldn't eat meat on Fridays and such. Nevertheless, meat was the largest part of an Elizabethan diet.
Fruit and vegetables were common, and they became even more popular as the tomato and the potato were intruduced from the New World. Although the wealthy saw fruit and vegetables as inferior foods and refused to eat them, the lower classes ate quite a lot of fruits and veggies. This is only one difference between the Upper and Lower class diets. While upper classes ate at elaborate banquets, lower class meals were a bit less fancy, as Linda Alchin said in her website "Elizabethan Food". Linda also writes, as does Jeffrey Singman in his book, no food was wasted, as the upper class folks were done with their food, the leftovers went to the servants. When the servants were done "feasting", what ever was left was given to the poor beggars that gathered outside. No food was wasted in this chain of meals.
Another difference between classes was drinks. Upper classes went to taverns or inns when they werent at home. These Elizabethan "bars" usually provided lodging and maybe ale or wine, as well as food. Lower class common folks were not allowed in these as these we settlements made for the wealthy. " The alehouse was by far the most common sort of establishment"(Singman, p141). These alehouses accepted common people and served beer, ale, wine, lodging, and food. But the ale and beer of the time had very little alcohol. And because water was contaminated in cities and in the country, beer and ale was a healthier choice for drinking. It was so common that even children drank ale and beer. It could store very well, and was preferred over some types of cider. Wine was not a common drink as the grapes in Britain were bad for winemaking. Wine had to imported from France, and was therefore expensive. Only wealthy, upper class folks would drink the fancy, great-tasting, wine. Lower classes drank beer as it was cheaper and had a longer shelf life. This is another difference betweent the diets of the upper class and the lower class.
Upper classes and lower classes would eat slightly different diets. The lower class ate more vegetables than the upper classes. While the upper classes would have far more elagant suppers and banquets. Lower class drank more beer and the upper class more expensive wine. But manners were always the same whether the family ate on a farm or in a noble dining hall. The diets of Elizabethans were some of the best in Europe at the time. Works Cited:
Singman, Jeffrey L. Daily Life in Elizabethan England. Westport, CT: Greenwood Publishing Group Inc., 1995. 131-44. Print.
Prepared by: Eric H.
Food and Festivities
The people of Shakespeare's time had quite a large selection from which to eat. Their specific diet changed with the seasons, as herbs, vegetables and fruits grew, or more types of meat were avaliable. During spring and summer, Elizabethan diets shifted slightly to more herbs and agriculture. But according to Jeffrey Singman in his book, Daily life in Elizabethan England, agriculture was laborious and was susceptible to disease. Furthermore, by today's standards, farming yielded small amounts of food due to misfortunes like poor weather. Farming did not supply all of the food Elizabethans ate, as livestock and meat was a huge part of the diet. As the Folger Shakepeare Library states in the web document, Fooles and Fricassees: Food in Shakespeare's England, Englishmen would eat any part of an animal that came their way. They were clever to trap birds and attempted to flavor their meat by feeding them spices and herbs. Travellers were impressed at how well Englishmen were fed. Elizabethan citizens ate a wide variety of items, and foreign travellers were sometimes jealous.
People ate at certain times of the day with their family. Breakfast was eaten early in the morning. Some people didn't even eat breakfast, but those that did either ate it right after they got out of bed, on the run as they went to work, or several hours after they woke. For breakfast, according to Jeffrey Singman author of Daily life in Elizabethan England, simple breakfast might have consisted of porridge or pottage (stew like food), or possibly scraps and leftovers from yesterday's supper. If some ate breakfast as a more hearty, sit-down meal, the food might consist of different types of bread with cheese and butter, ale, wine, plenty of fruit, and a form of meat. Whether the meat be chicken, beef or mutton. The real food was dinner. These hearty formal meals were served at 11 or noon time, around the modern day "lunch" time. And later, supper would be served at some time from 6 to 9 o'clock. These meals usually would have a few courses, each of the courses containing several dishes. As Jeffrey Singman writes, an old cookbook gives a sample menu. The first course would contain pottage or stew, salted beef, roasted meat, and other forms of meat. The second course would have lamb, roasted rabbits, venison and dessert. Most people were very religious in Elizabethan times, so prayers were always said before the meal. Also after the meal, a prayer was said again to give thanks. Manners in Elizabethan England was very important to families and was enforced fiercely if children were being rude. No matter the time of day, the way meals were eaten was the same for all classes in society.
Bread was an important part of everyone's diet. As Singman says, "it was always present at meals, although contemporaries agreed that it was less important in England than on the Continent." This doesn't mean the Elizabethan English folks didn't enjoy baking their many varieties of bread. Wheat was favored as the grain to use. Also whiter breads were preferred over darker breads. Besides wheat, English bakers used many different grains. The lower class usually made do with rye, barley, or mixed-grain breads. These were cheaper than the wheat that the rich ate. Bread wasn't baked in pans, therefore the loaves were round and short. Most bread would go stale after only a few days, but nothing was wasted. Stale bread was perfect for soups, stews, or pottage (stew). Hard, stale biscuits were favored over bread on ships as they lasted longer and didn't mold. Bread was in every meal, and came in many forms, but it was not the largest part of an Elizabethan diet.
There were many more varieties of meat eaten in the sixteenth century than today. Red meat often consisted of beef, mutton, pork, and lamb. For Poultry, chickens, ducks, geese, and the occasional pigeon found their way onto the table. Deer, rabbits, pigs, and wildfowl were used in an enormous variety of recipes. Seafood was an enormous economic business but it was also a decent part of the diet. Lower classes ate whatever meat was readily avaliable, while upper class folks went on hunting parties to kill deer and birds. As most people in Elizabethan England were very religious, meat was forbidden during lent or advent, or sometimes people wouldn't eat meat on Fridays and such. Nevertheless, meat was the largest part of an Elizabethan diet.
Fruit and vegetables were common, and they became even more popular as the tomato and the potato were intruduced from the New World. Although the wealthy saw fruit and vegetables as inferior foods and refused to eat them, the lower classes ate quite a lot of fruits and veggies. This is only one difference between the Upper and Lower class diets. While upper classes ate at elaborate banquets, lower class meals were a bit less fancy, as Linda Alchin said in her website "Elizabethan Food". Linda also writes, as does Jeffrey Singman in his book, no food was wasted, as the upper class folks were done with their food, the leftovers went to the servants. When the servants were done "feasting", what ever was left was given to the poor beggars that gathered outside. No food was wasted in this chain of meals.
Another difference between classes was drinks. Upper classes went to taverns or inns when they werent at home. These Elizabethan "bars" usually provided lodging and maybe ale or wine, as well as food. Lower class common folks were not allowed in these as these we settlements made for the wealthy. " The alehouse was by far the most common sort of establishment"(Singman, p141). These alehouses accepted common people and served beer, ale, wine, lodging, and food. But the ale and beer of the time had very little alcohol. And because water was contaminated in cities and in the country, beer and ale was a healthier choice for drinking. It was so common that even children drank ale and beer. It could store very well, and was preferred over some types of cider. Wine was not a common drink as the grapes in Britain were bad for winemaking. Wine had to imported from France, and was therefore expensive. Only wealthy, upper class folks would drink the fancy, great-tasting, wine. Lower classes drank beer as it was cheaper and had a longer shelf life. This is another difference betweent the diets of the upper class and the lower class.
Upper classes and lower classes would eat slightly different diets. The lower class ate more vegetables than the upper classes. While the upper classes would have far more elagant suppers and banquets. Lower class drank more beer and the upper class more expensive wine. But manners were always the same whether the family ate on a farm or in a noble dining hall. The diets of Elizabethans were some of the best in Europe at the time.
Works Cited:
Singman, Jeffrey L. Daily Life in Elizabethan England. Westport, CT: Greenwood Publishing Group Inc., 1995. 131-44. Print.
"Fooles and Fricassees: Food in Shakespearean England." Folger Shakespeare Library. Folger Shakepeare Library, 30 Dec 1999. Web. 28 Mar 2010. http://www.folger.edu/html/exhibitions/fooles_fricassees/. Alchin, Linda. "Elizabethan food." Elizabethan Era. N.p., 20 Mar 2008. Web. 4 Apr 2010. <http://www.elizabethan-era.org.uk/elizabethan-food.htm>.